2016 LMS Market Overview

The learning management system (LMS) market is growing fast and it doesn’t look like its about to slow down anytime soon. According to Forbes the LMS market was well over $2.5 billion and will grow to $8 billion by 2018 with North America leading the market share. Rapid growth in the LMS market can be explained by many factors but two key points that stand out are as follows:

Organizations who currently use an LMS recognize their immense benefits and are wanting to upgrade to more advanced systems

Organizations who do not currently use an LMS have caught wind of their value and are looking to acquire one to remain competitive

While this may seem straight forward, there is much more to the market that buyers need to know. A recent survey from online learning researcherSoftware advice surveyed over 150 HR professionals to uncover the most common uses of a LMS, their greatest impact and the largest challenges organizations face. Let’s take a look at what your HR counterparts had to say and at the end of this article, we provide three complimentary resources that will assist you in your LMS decision-making process.

Top 3 Most Used LMS Functions

The top three functions of LMS software, as indicated by HR professionals, are training testing (73%), administration testing (68%) and record-keeping (53%). According to Mark Brandau, VP of marketing at a recognized LMS firm, these findings ring true with why organizations choose to adopt an LMS. eLearning serves as a powerful method for providing streamlined and consistent training to any number of employees.

The three types of training LMSs are most used for include compliance-related training, talent development and educating external audiences such as partners, customers and resellers.Compliance training in particular is a key area where LMS vendors will begin to specialize in largely due to the growing compliance activities governed by industry, government and internal policy.

Top 3 Business Impacts of the LMS

With regard to the impact of learning management systems on business objectives, 99% of users indicated that their organization’s LMS has a ‘positive’ or ‘very positive’ impact on training programs. In particular, HR professionals deemed the organization of training content, training efficiency and tracking training progress as the top three benefits of an LMS for training purposes. Falling close behind is the benefit LMSs provide in standardizing training, managing and improving job performance and simultaneously training multiple groups of employees.

Top 3 LMS Challenges

While learning management systems have been proven to provide immense benefit to organizations of all shapes and sizes, like any technology, they come with challenges. Or rather, opportunities to improve! Thirty-two percent of respondents indicate that integration with other systems is a moderate to major challenge for them. The next two major challenges are low user adoption (21%) due to difficulties in learning how to use the system and a lack of customization (22%).

Ensuring that you select a LMS that can address these challenges in ways that are beneficial to your organization is key. Take note that customization is quickly becoming a low-ranking priority for LMS companies because it is more profitable to provide a system that meets the need of many, rather than the needs of a few. User adoption is something that can be boosted with a simple and easy to use interface, the complimentary resources we provide below provide an ample start for selecting an LMS that is just right for you.

LMS Decision-Making Resources

Choosing an LMS that is the right fit for your organization is not an easy task. Here are a few resources that will help you in the decision-making process: